Letters to the Editor
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Missing the point
As it regards David Shuster's career: going beyond forcing him to apologize and humiliating him through a suspension would be overly punititve.
I believe he erred in his reference and in the associated vitality of his metaphor; and so he should be censured in the interest of holding the tenuous line on decorum in the professional press and pundit corps.
However, let's not fail to recognize that he was substantially correct, insofar as metaphorical language can be. The Clinton's are using Chelsea. And inasmuch as she is a vibrant, young woman she from a certain market/demo she communicates to certain (and various) markets/demos several frieghted items, not the least of which are youth and sex.
Perhaps is resonates so violently because the Clinton's are in many ways about sex: the vitality of Bill's libido, adventures and misadventures; the ambiguity of Hillary's projected closet lesbianism/castratitory demeaner/satisfied spouse(???); and Chelsea's arrival as an attractive woman, when lets face it many of us always thought she would remain mostly asexual or heinous.
I enjoy Shuster (though before his suspension he was starting to feel overexposed given his nascent gravitas) and I wish him a speedy return and rehabilitation. After being mostly negative about Hillary I am now entirely negative about Hillary. As for the audience and the management. If the audience would mature and enlighten itself, perhaps management could comport themselves more like adults and recognize that as a practical matter a mistake was made while recognizing as a journalistic matter a good call was made. That would enable us all (including Shuster) to get back to this thing.
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Are you kidding me?
Of course the Obamas would raise a fuss if derogatory terms were applied to their children! After all they are under 10 years old. Chelsea is a grown assed woman! She should be able to take care of herself. Besides, I find it strange that the Clintons would get upset with Shuster while readily agreeing to go on Roger Ailes network for a debate, where they have been denigrated for years. And lets not forget the campaign contributions from the owner of a network that regularly calls the them everything but children of God! So methinks thou protests too much!!
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Hillary should be magnanimous and forgive this silly guy
Nothing shows the gracious and large soul of a person than forgiving someone who has done you a disservice. Mr. Shuster did say something stupid. So, Hillary should say, "It's been a long campaign, and we all get carried away. While Mr. Shuster said something dumb, no one should lose their job for a dumb statement. Go, and sin no more."
That would impress people, and gain her some karma.
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Chelsea
Is more ready for the Presidency than Obama.
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Excuse me...
...Republicans, notably Lynne Cheney, have inveighed quite sharply against the media for less than this. Considering the right's constant whining about "liberal media bias" for the smallest little thing, usually having more to do with some particularly dangerous policy position than something personal, you'd think MSNBC would leave the sensationalism to Fox "News." I guess the rules on courtesy and respect only apply to Republican candidates.
Exactly what, other than her gender, disqualifies Hillary Clinton from being the next President in the eyes of certain members of the Fourth Estate? Has David Schuster ever honestly told us why he thinks Sen. Clinton ought not be President, or is merely his intention to play a sexist pig for the benefit of his audience? Any TV channel that claims to devote itself to serious journalism as MSNBC does should have clamped down tight on this sort of behavior long ago, even on their silly morning shows.
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Be for real
"I'd love to see Barack Obama weigh in on the "pimped out" comment, too;"
Why should he? For another distraction in this historic campaign? Another opportunity for MSNBC et al to parse a verb? Why not have McCain or Huckabee jump in with the level of righteous indignation that could possibly put this arrogant, mindless, self-possessed,loose lipped crowd in check? Hillary and her camp are handling these schoolyard punks just fine. Let her handle it.
Also, "... many people have noted correctly that Shuster might never work in television again had he used "pimped out" to refer to Michelle Obama or the couple's cherished daughters."
To that dream I say "get real." "Never work in television again?" This is a teflon coated white fella you're talking about. "Never work in television again" has come to mean a couple weeks off and then back to the paycheck either at msnbc or another network owned by one of the other old boys in the club.
MSNBC, Fox et al have opened the airwaves to potty brained anchors trained in the MTV school of trashy thinking. And they like it like that. Dial through the 4000 channels and you come to know this.
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Shuster, Scapegoat?
I'm a 38 year old white male and a political junky who use to watch MSNBC religiously everynight. Now I refuse to turn to that channel. I'm tired of the sarcastic, arrogant and outright lies by Matthews, Scarborough, Carlson, Barnicle and now Olbermann and Shuster. They will say anything to belittle Senator Clinton. My question is...what did she REALLY do to deserve this unfair treatment?
Shuster is not a scapegoat. He has worked for MSNBC long enough to know that the fratboy punks have said rude things and had to "apologize" for the comments. Why is it fair for Don Imus to be fired for his comments to one ethnic group but it's not fair for Shuster to receive the same treatment for his comments to another? He is a journalist and needs to act like one. His question was no way journalism. Would he have said the same thing about Romney's 5 sons? Or about McCain campaiging with his Marine son before the NH primary? I think not. He said it deliberatly because it was Senator Clinton's daughter. Have we lost ALL respect for former First Ladys and former First Daughters?
I honestly would like to see Matthews, Scarborough and Carlson to be fired first but I do believe Shuster should get the same treatment as Don Imus. He is not a child and NBC should act appropriately.